There recently appeared a retrospective Yahowa 13/Father Yod LP which went so deep below the radar that most people may not even know it exists. This is a shame since it is, in fact, possibly, the best archival YHWH release so far! I wrote a review of it in Ugly Things magazine, which is excerpted here:

YAHOWA 13 (Los Angeles, CA)Spirit Of ’76 2010 (Sagittarius no #) [200p]"After several high-profile releases, this retrospective Yahowa LP slipped out in a way that seems almost deliberately mysterious. Housed in a dull cover with a drawing of Father Yod, it comes with basically zero information except that it’s a very limited pressing. It looks like an old school bootleg for hardcore collectors, but the label is a subsidiary of noted indie imprint Qbico. So what gives?

Before I answer that, and I will, some words about the music. From the opening minute it’s obvious that we are in the presence of Father Yod, so this is clearly a vintage recording. The band is credited as ‘Spirit Of 76’, which was the earliest of a few different Source Family rock bands, featuring keyboard and female backing vocals. What comes streaming out of the speakers confirms the credit, with a rich, at times jazz-funky sound reminiscent of side 1 of the Expansion album. The mood is a bit lighter than the awesome dark intensity of Contraction and Expansion, but an outré time is still guaranteed for all, thanks to Yod’s inspired presence and the quality and commitment of the musicians. The playing is remarkably adept, with some wicked guitar leads emerging out of the jammy keyboard groove. Any devotee of the Source Family’s music will find what he needs on this LP, which also boosts better sound than the ‘70s pressings.

As to the odd nature of the release I can report, exclusively for UT from Yahowa guitar hero Djin Aquarian that, yes, it is a legit product from a legit label, despite its bootleg appearance, and yes, this is Father & the early Spirit Of ’76 band. In fact, it seems to be nothing less than the very earliest recording from the entire Yahowa scene, preceding Expansion & co. Why Sagittarius decided to treat this vital, arresting recording from a major cult band as some gray area shit they wanted to bury is anyone’s guess, but I gathered that delays in liner notes and documentation from Djin and friends may have frustrated the label. It’s ironic that an outfit that was once known only among esoteric record collectors sees it’s most attractive archival release come out as a faceless 200-copy press, which may already be sold out when you read this."